


Upon Melted Lips

by BreG21



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, F/M, Happy Ending, Humor, Identity Reveal, Love Confessions, fuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-13
Updated: 2019-09-13
Packaged: 2020-10-17 10:15:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20619362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BreG21/pseuds/BreG21
Summary: To preface this, he should start by saying, he didn't know. It was supposed to be a harmless little prank on a friend to get hernotto be mad at him anymore. He wasn't expecting the love confession from someone that he thought had the furthest thing from romantic feelings towards him or for his kwami to get caught by said person.Orfor her to have a kwami of her own.Yes, especially notthat.Set during Puppeteer 2! with. A fix-it shot.





	Upon Melted Lips

**Author's Note:**

> So, I haven't been okay with Puppeteer and 'that' scene since it aired and I finally got around to doing something about it! Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Hello there, Husband here. So we all know the loveable dork that Adrien is and how while he has a hidden side filled with pop culture references there is no doubt in my mind that to get pumped up for things he listens to cheesy as all HFIL 80's montage music. So that being said here is my idea of what's going through his head as he gets pumped up for his big confrontation. Although I don't think he knew how big it was going to get. Hope you enjoy as much as I did. Transformers The Movie- Track 4: Dare

Adrien was at a complete loss as to what to do.

The day started off okay— at first. Marinette, Manon, Alya, and Nino had thankfully, decided to tag along with him to the wax museum so that they could re-do his arm. It was all going fairly well.

Until Nino decided to slip up.

Adrien loved the guy like a brother, but even he knew what had been said was a mistake that the DJ would pay dearly for by his girlfriend. The blogger could be vicious at times. If anything, Adrien would make sure that Alya knew Ninio had tried to deny what he had said and tried to backtrack.

Maybe that would cut the poor guy some slack. Hopefully.

Because that was when Adrien had learned Marinette didn't really like him. Which spiraled his good mood almost instantly into dismay.

If she didn't like him, could he even call her his friend?

For some unknown reason, he just didn't like that. It didn't settle with him, nor did he really expect the new bit of information. Adrien actually thought he and Marinette were on good terms, especially as of late. Even went to as far as to say they had become good friends.

However, it looked like he was being just a bit too hopeful.

But as he exited the elevator, determination sparked, igniting in his chest and burned throughout. He was gonna make sure she was comfortable around him. "Marinette's important to me." He had tried to explain to his kwami in the elevator moments ago. "I'll do whatever it takes to make her feel good when she's around."

Plagg hovered over his chosen's shoulder. "Like giving her cheese?"

The young model rolled his eyes playfully. "Like cheering her up. Making her laugh." He brought his fingers up to lightly scratch underneath Plagg's chin. "Doing pranks like you always do to me."

No matter what it took. She was a friend he wasn't willing to lose. So, he'd find an answer, any opportunity that he could when it came knocking.

_"I'm super cool, I'm super cool, I'm super cool."_

And hello there opportunity, thanks for knocking.

It couldn't be that bad of an idea to try to cheer Marinette up with a prank, could it? Why not give it a shot?

When his eyes caught sight of her existing the bathroom, Adrien knew he had to enact the plan right away. His ears caught the few words that she was chanting to herself as she drew near but he didn't have time to pay much attention to them as to why she was saying them in the first place.

Because, of course she was cool? Why would she need to remind herself that?

After shooing Plagg away to— what he assumed to be— his outer jacket pocket, Adrien became frozen stiff— something he had perfected after so long of being a model. It was almost instinct at this point to be able to pose so still.

Marinette was walking in his direction, eyes closed— still muttering words under breath— so she couldn't see what was right in front of her, only trusting the pathway her feet were taking.

Just as she was about to crash into him— he would've caught her if need be— she opened her eyes and screamed at the sight of him. It almost made him laugh before she calmed and came to the conclusion that it was just his statue.

Marinette sighed in relief. "Phew." She paused before unclasping her little pouch at her side. "It's only his statue— Tikki, you can come out."

_Tikki?_

The all too familiar name— Reflekta doll flashed in a small burst within his mind's eye— caused his heart to sputter to a screeching halt and drop to the confines of his stomach. His world spun while he stayed still and snapped back into place within seconds of the situation finally dawned on him.

Because before he could think to stop what was about to happen, Tikki came fluttering out of the designer's little clutch that was always present at her side.

_Oh, no._

Adrien wasn't expecting that. Out of all the things the universe liked to throw at him, this was just a too far of a stretch to even be remotely close to reality. He had to hold back the gulp that his throat wanted to constrict into, but it was definitely hard to fight.

Her eyes softened as she took in the sight of the statue and his own breath wanted to hitch. Her words were almost breathless as she whispered, "Wow." She inched closer, hand paused as if to touch him, but thought better of it last minute before her hand dropped to her side. "Tikki, I don't know what to do anymore."

Before her kwami could utter another word, Marinette's eyes found something behind him and widened as her mouth gasped. "Plagg? Is...is that you?"

_Shoot._

While he thought Plagg had fluttered to hide in his pocket, it turned out, that the creature of destruction had hidden behind his shoulder, and was consequently, caught, red handed.

He would laugh if he could. Maybe it would help his breathing to finally start working again.

Plagg peaked out from where he was so wonderfully hidden. "Pigtails. Sugar cube. How's it hangin'?"

Marinette's eyes narrowed immediately in suspicion. Wow, that was something he didn't see often— well, directed at him at least, only at their classmates. And apparently at akuma's as well— Which he was still processing— The shyness was all gone. "Where's Chat? You know you're supposed to be by him at all times. Do you want a repeat of Sandboy?"

Plagg brought a paw to his mouth to muffle his snickers. "Oh, he's here, somewhere. Quit worrying." He flew out from his hiding spot and started to do backstrokes in mid air, as if it was the best day to have ever existed.

Adrien would agree, if not for the fact that his heart rate was going a hundred beats per minute and he was worried that Ladybug— Marinette— was gonna kill him once she found out that he was, indeed, not a statue.

This had to be the best, and the worst day of his life. Best because Ladybug, his partner, was his awesome, amazing— their everyday ladybug, which he had called her once and now was ironic— was indeed his classmate. It was also the worst day because Marinette was Ladybug, and if there was anyone in this world that could scare him as much as his Lady, it would be Marinette.

Which, now made a lot of sense.

And to boot, she didn't have feelings for either side of him.

It just wasn't his day, now was it?

This time, Tikki interrupted Marinette before she could speak. "If you're here, that means that's not a.."

Plagg's grin only grew. "Yep."

If possible, the little bug only darkened in color. "Then he should quit-"

The treacherous creature yawned as if he was bored, rather than how he should've been. Scared. Scared out of his mind because of the situation they found themselves in. But Plagg never did know how to read a room, or care, now did he? "Oh, sugar cube, don't you think it's time to put this whole thing to rest? I'm getting quite tired of this mutual pinning honestly."

Mutual pinning? What did that mean?

Marinette voiced his thoughts. "What in the world do you mean by 'mutual pinning?'"

Tikki ignored her. "It should be on their own accord, with her being willing and understanding to what's going on. She doesn't know."

"And if she knew." Plagg drawled with a roll of his cat like eyes. "Then there would be a lot more stuttering involved, and we would be getting nowhere, with months-long, maybe even years, of them being so sad with 'unrequited love.'

Okay, Plagg needed to stop. He knew Ladybug already didn't love him as Chat, weredad would now forever be a mystery to him, and Marinette definitely didn't like him romantically as Adrien— she had said so so many times when he thought it might have been a possibility that she felt more for him than she lead on, and with Nino's confirmation that she didn't even like him as a friend, it all fit too well.

But Tikki just wasn't having it. "He needs to come clean." Her eyes lowered into a half lidded glare, everything stern. "Now."

And he would. He really would if he could. But this wasn't an act anymore. He was convinced he was glued and molded to the spot as if he was the actual statue himself. This wasn't him trying to have fun to lighten a mood with a friend, nor was it a prank. He literally could not move. This was fear flooded in and had an iron like grip around his neck.

He could tell Marinette was becoming impatient at being clueless as to what was going on around her as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Okay, you guys. I wanna know now. What's going on?"

Tikki sighed, but before she could make a sound, Plagg cut her off by flying over to Adrien's head settling in his perfectly styled hair. "Pigtails, I need to know something. I saw your googly eyes earlier. Is this the guy you keep rejecting my kid for?"

The tone in the bug like creature was draining into a tired, exhausted one within seconds. "Stinky stocks, you really need to stop."

Adrien couldn't help but agree. His kwami needed to stop before this became even wors-

"Yes."

Okay, hold up. Back up. _What?_

Actually…. on second thought, please continue.

Marinette sighed. "I've liked him for a while." She paused to drop her eyes to the floor beneath her, the tip of her ballet slipper digging an invisible hole into the granite as she took her bottom lip between her teeth. "I just... can't form my words around.. him."

Even though he couldn't see Plagg from his seat on top of his head, Adrien knew he was eying Marinette carefully. A rare thing he did when he truly cared about something. "And what makes him better than my kid?"

The young designer shook her head. "I never said he's better. He's just.." She paused as if to find the right words. "He just got to my heart first." She lifted a hand to her chest where would heart would be and squeezed the fabric of her shirt. Her next words were heavy with pain, but she still said them. "And I'm happy that he's there. I wouldn't change it if I could."

Adrien could feel Plagg roll around in his tufts of hair. "What about that Luka kid? It seems like you thought nicely of him."

Her eyes snapped to the top of his head. "How do you know that?"

Adrien could _hear_ the smirk. "Sugar cube and I talk."

He could tell she decided not to reprimand her kwami at that moment. "You gotta understand, Plagg. Adrien… he's unreachable. No matter what, I just can't tell him how I feel. Luka, he's made it clear about his feelings for me. He's within reach, and as horrible as it sounds, it would just be easier to be with him. It would be an easier option."

Plagg almost sounded sad. Sympathetic, if Adrien could put a more accurate word to it. "But not the one you really want? Easier isn't always better, princess. A wise man once said there is always an easy way and then there's the right way."

Tikki sent Plagg a dirty look. "Was that wise man Dumbledore?"

Marinette looked away, almost with guilt, completely unaware of the short bickering between the two kwami's. "Do any of us really get what we really want in the end? I'd be…. Happy enough. I know Luka could make me happy."

That brought the bickering to a dead stop.

Plagg was not a serious creature, Adrien could count on one hand and still have fingers to spare of when he actually said something meaningful, but the tone in his voice spoke volumes of his centuries upon centuries of old age. "What about Chat, then?"

And something just seemed to flare within those ocean blues that Adrien had grown to love over such a time. Determination. It was all Ladybug, and it came from Marinette. It was there because it was all Marinette and just how could he not see that?

And when she spoke, her words almost made him choke. _"He's someone I can't have."_

It was different in the way that she spoke about Adrien. Adrien wasn't in reach, Chat was. She fully knew of his feelings. But Chat was something she decided wasn't a possibility.

And before his heart could shatter, she picked it right back up. "While, yes, Adrien got to my heart first, there are so many other reasons Chat and I can't be together. We're constantly in danger…. If Adrien hadn't gotten to my heart first, while I said I could be happy with Luka if I worked for it over time, no one could rival the love I feel for Adrien like Chat could. And that's a scary thought— to know I could love someone just as much as I love Adrien if I… if I just let myself."

Love. She loved him.

And the pain screaming in her eyes caused him just as much, yet he did his best to remain the statue he was pretending to be. "And it would be so easy in the sense of letting that feeling just come out. Because it's there. I deny it, I keep it locked away, but I know it's there underneath. Waiting to surface. Maybe not at first, but lately...There are so many times I wanna laugh at his jokes, even during battle— which is the only time that they really annoy me— where I wanna flirt back all the time. Especially after I found out he genuinely loves Ladybug— me."

She sighed and he wanted to take those sweet sad lips between his own. "But we can't. Because it's dangerous. I can't let him get hurt because of me. It's hard. What we do to keep people safe is a hard job. I could get distracted because of our relationship. Goodness knows how he already sacrifices himself for me way too much."

Well, excuse him. He was gonna protect her with every fiber of his being until he last breath.

And if she didn't like that, well, she could just go pout in a corner.

"And what about identities?" She continued on, not really asking Plagg at this point. "We'd wanna know eventually. Sooner than we should. If I got akumatized, if he got hurt because I knew." Her head bowed in shame. "I don't think I could live with myself if that ever happened."

With that, his heart broke for her. Because no matter what, his bugaboo shouldn't carry that much guilt and worry on her shoulders. She already had too much as it was. He wanted to hold her, hug her. Kiss her. Comfort her. Be anything and everything she needed him to be.

For the first time though, he felt as if being himself would suffice for her. He didn't need to be Adrien with the Agreste name slapped on, nor did he have to be the superhero that everyone looked up to and have to hold himself up to. He didn't have to put up walls with his flirty remarks or pickup lines.

Did that mean he could just be him? A mixed bag of Adrien and Chat— neither less than the other. Because at the end of the the day that's who he truly was. Adrien was, in fact, genuine, while the mask of Chat helped him to explore what his father didn't allow him allowed to see.

And Marinette accepting all the craziness that came with his life and who he was? Well, that felt more freeing that any mask a miraculous could offer.

Plagg started to bounce on his head.

He sometimes really couldn't stand the little thing. "Okay. Let's say this guy was actually in reach." Adrien didn't need to be a rocket scientist to know Plagg was pointing at him. "What would you say? How would you confess to him?"

She looked to Tikki, who sighed, but nodded for her to go on ahead and say what she needed to. Looking back to Adrien, she once more, inched closer, but this time, didn't bring her hand up. Her gaze was filled with nothing but love and adoration for him and where in the world had he been to miss that of all things. Forget her being Ladybug, how had he not notice Marinette looking at him like he was her everything and then some?

The exact same way he looked at his partner. Like he was the magnet to her compass and he was her homebound.

Boy, did he put the word obvious to shame.

Her tongue darted out to run along the length of her tongue and he had to restrict himself from breaking and just kissing her senseless. Not now, not yet. As selfish as it was, she needed to get this out in the easiest way she could, he had the suspicion that if he would reveal himself, she wouldn't be able to talk for a week straight.

So, he stood, and waited for her to speak. "I'd tell him how much I love him. How it isn't because he's a model." She scoffed at the word. "I love him because I got to see that real smile and hear his actual laugh. Even when he doesn't notice, I do. I notice his fake smiles. I notice when his dad disappoints him just, just a bit too much. I notice when he feels alone. Traped even."

She could see that? She could see through the facade he had to put up when he was around his father?

Gosh, did he love this girl. And it took until this moment to realize that. The words just a friend replayed in his head and taunting him in a new light. They hadn't been for reassuring everyone else that she was only his friend, it was to remind him.

Because somewhere, deep down, to levels he couldn't even comprehend at this moment, he knew. Ladybug may have overshadowed all his other thought of love, blinded him to anyone else. But Marinette had always been there, like a slow growing spark that was finally ready to burst into a raging fire if he just let his guard down for a second.

Even if he hadn't known it. Even if just a friend was true to his conscious mind, she was there, just ready to pounce and steal his heart from underneath him. She was right on that. It was a scary thought. To love someone that much. But it was amazing all in the same breath.

He hadn't allowed his mind to even think about Marinette in that context, because as far as he knew, she didn't have a crush on him. Add that to the fact that, while he was very much in love with Ladybug, Marinette was real.

Real could always leave. Just like his mother. Just like the little bit that he did have of his father before she left. It could go in a blink of an eye. He hadn't been too sure how he could handle that happening a third time around. As it was, he was already afraid of losing Plagg one day.

With Ladybug, it was always easier. He knew his love was unattainable. As much as he tried, and truly wanted it, a part of him knew it was very unlikely to happen.

But here they were now, and as Nino had so recently taught him what assuming could make one out to be, Adrien had done just that.

His attention was drawn back to her when she spoke, her smile was tender with soft eyes. "But I can also see the joy school brings him. The happiness his friends give him. How he is simply carefree when he's around people he really loves. He values that. Sure, he puts on a face, but that was only when his father is around, when he's with his friends, it's different. It's real, for the most part. That's why I guess I'm okay with just being friends. Because he needs that. He loves that. And that's enough for me. To see him happy makes me happy. Especially when it's genuine."

That's… that's all she wanted? Was for him to be happy?

Plagg whistled, and Adrien almost jumped at the sound. He had forgotten that there were other presences in the room beside them. "Wow, pigtails, didn't know you had it in you."

She giggled for the first time since this whole situation started. "I think that's why I fell for him when he gave me his umbrella. Because he was open. It was the first time I saw it in him. He was vulnerable for me, because he understood how important it was to have friendship, my friendship. How much it meant to him. And when he laughed." She sighed dreamily. "It was a sound that could never be replicated. It was a sound all on its own, but to describe in just one would— it would be joy. And I'll never forget that."

She loved him that long? And hadn't given up? But, instead of pursuing him, instead of going after what she wanted, she put his view of their friendship before her feelings of her crush before herself?

He really didn't deserve her.

That was when Plagg decided he was becoming bored with this game. He zipped into view, making sure that they could both see him. He lifted his left pay higher in the air that his other, as if he was weighing his options."So, let's say...you have A: Adrien Agreste, who you love to infinity and the stars and blah blah blah, all that mushy gooey stuff, but is unreachable."

Adrien could tell Tikki was just about done with her counterpart as she began buzzing in the air, eyes set in a hard glare. "Plagg, I swear."

But the little devil was quickly dismissive. "C'mon, sugarcube. We're already halfway through, might as well go all the way. Besides if this keeps playing out the way it is, it will easily be in my top five."

She sighed, but let him continue to go on. He lifted his other paw, while lowering his right, "and then we have B, Chat, who is reachable in the way that you know he loves you, you know you could happily love him, but simply can't have him at the moment because of whole identity issues and dating in a mask would be too hard." The last of his words he intentionally made extra exaggerated.

A look of morbid curiosity snuck it's way seamlessly way onto her face as her eyes watched hin carefully, silently. "That would be correct."

"Or C." And this is where his qualification for the kwami of destruction came into play, Adrien was sure of it. "You could just have one."

The morbid curiosity was flushed out and instantly replaced with suspicion and fear. "Plagg, I'm gonna ask you one thing, and you're gonna answer me with something that'll help me sleep tonight, okay?"

Plagg shrugged his shoulders carelessly. "Can't promise you that, but okay."

Her words were slow and careful as she spoke, picking each one with precise thought. Her tone was controlled, but he could hear the underlying anger just wanting to pop. "When I asked if Chat was nearby, and you said yes, you meant he was elsewhere close in this building and not in this room, right?"

He acted as if he was pondering the thought with great care. Adrien knew he wasn't. "What would you make you feel better? A lie or the truth?"

She gulped. "Lie please."

The response she was given was a crackle of laughter. "Then, yeah, pigtails. Chat's somewhere else in this building, completely oblivious to your whole speech and confession, and not right in front of you." Plagg whirled around to face his owner. "Kid, I think you can finally unfreeze yourself."

His body gave out at that. He almost dropped to his knees as his muscles were released from their restricted position, but he was able to hold himself up at the last minute. His bones and every nerve ending in his body screamed at him in pain for holding still that long, but his only concern was the girl in front of him.

The girl, who had just confessed everything and had now traded places with the boy, becoming a frozen statue herself, only her mouth left opened wide, gasping for air as she looked on in shock. He knew he had to fix this right away. "Before you say anything, I had no idea that this," He frailed his arm about in the space between them, "Was gonna happen."

Adrien started to panic as he watched the color from Marinette's face start to drain, and new, oxygen lacking, colors started to take their place. Her mouth somehow had the agility to move a little, only enough to open and close a few inches as she tried to force the words out, but it was something."I-I… you're...I.."

He tried not to laugh as she pointed at him with her index finger with large eyes. It wasn't the right time to laugh, that would be for later, when her skin was back to normal, oxygen filled levels, and she was somewhat coherent in talking. He tried to show the guilt that was heavy in his chest on his face. "I know. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have stayed a statue that long. But I was just so in shock that I couldn't move. I...I wish I could fix this. I didn't mean to hurt you. I hope you don't hate me after this."

Marinette somehow found the will to move her head a little. Just side to side in a showing of no and Adrien released a breathe he didn't even know he was holding in that second. It was something, right? He couldn't ask for much more in that moment.

In a brave move, Adrien crawled forward, steps lumped with fear as he went to her with caution. Thankfully, with every step he took, life began to trickle back into her face. When he finally did reach Marinette, her face finally had enough color to her that Adrien wasn't worried that she might literally combust.

When her words finally came to her, it was clearly with a struggle. But she was Marinette and Ladybug. If anyone could, it would be her. "I don't hate you, Adrien. I don't think I ever really could." She said it with such earnest that Adrien just about melted.

He brought his hand up, and it hovered just above her shoulder, wanting to provide some comfort and reassurance, but dang it, because they might be Ladybug and Chat, but they were also Marinette and they were so uncharted territory that he just didn't know where they stood.

But she did. Marinette always knew. She knew him— even when he didn't know— she knew their partnership, and she knew how to piece them back together, even after something so hard as this to have happened.

Stepping forward, she put herself almost nose to nose, and _oh kwamis,_ did her eyes always sparkle like that? Or had he just been too stupid to notice? Even in his dumbfounded moment, he understood what she was trying to relay, even when her words failed her.

She was allowing him to bridge the gap, she was telling him that this was okay. That they were okay. As sure as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, they would find their footing once again. No matter if it was as Ladybug and Chat, Marinette and Adrien, or both. They would find their sync.

He took her wordless permission, and wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in as slipped her own arms around his neck. He was powerless against the ability to bury his head in her shoulder and finally, after almost a year, breathed in her intoxicating, inviting smell of strawberries, sweets, and just the hint of chocolate that he wondered on sleepless nights if her lips tasted all the same.

A part of him hoped to find out.

"For the risk of it being cheesy." It was the first time she spoke with sound rather than air, even though there wasn't a lot of volume behind her words, there was still love in them as she laid her head against his shoulder and it was all he ever wanted to hear for the rest of his life. She pulled back to look at him. "I'm glad it's you."

He could drown in her eyes, be swallowed whole, and he'd go willingly. But that wasn't new news, now was it?

He felt like a lovesick fool. Probably looked like one too. Not that he really cared. Pressing his forehead against hers, he whispered. "I'm glad that it's you too."

She giggled, and it was the best thing he had ever heard in all his young fifteen years of life. "I guess that's a good thing, huh?"

He nodded. "Yeah." He paused, just taking her in and letting their new reality to fully take hold. "You're taking this better than I thought you would."

She shrugged. "I'm chanting in my head _Chat Chat Chat_ to keep myself from breaking on the outside. I'm screaming internally. I'll probably be screaming into my pillow tonight as well."

"I'll make sure to help her through it tonight!"

They both chuckled at the tiny voice of encouragement from Tikki. Adrien sighed as he returned full attention to this amazing, sweet, strong girl in front of him. He questioned for the millionth time that day just how could this be real? How could she be real? "Now that you know, is it something you want? Chat _and_ Adrien."

"Oh, kitty." She cooed as she lifted her hand from his shoulder and slowly creased the warm skin just under his eye where his mask would lay. "I never let myself because I didn't want to entertain an idea that just… couldn't be a reality at the moment and the same went for Adrien, as I had said to Plagg. But it feels… possible now. You're right here, in front of me. That doesn't make it easier, but it feels real— right. Complete. Whatever word you wanna use. It just fits. You and I fit. And it's something I wanna fight for. If you're still willing."

"But what about Lu-"

She shook her head and that determination flashed in her eyes once more. "I couldn't love him the way I love you. Even if I worked for it, even if I learned to love him, even if he was the easier option. He isn't you. I'm not saying we wouldn't have to work for our relationship, on the contrary, we'd probably have to work twice as hard with secret identities, but I want to. I want to more than just about anything because it'll be worth. You've always been worth it, but I've been scared. One side of me would always have to be hidden because you wouldn't be able to know. You do now though, and it's better than I could ever say. This… this feels _possible_ for once. But that's only if you want this too."

"Of course I want to." She was so close. For once, she was close and within reach. "I've always wanted it to work, always will. Are you sure though? One hundred percent? Even with all my stupid jokes and puns?"

"Yes." She promised. "Without a doubt. No matter how loud I'm screaming in the inside, I know this is all I want. That this, well this all I could ever ask for."

He couldn't help but lean in. "Marinette. Could… can I please?"

She seemed to know hat he was trying to say, as she always did, and quickly nodded before pressing on the tips of her toes and connecting her lips to his.

He never knew exactly what to expect if he would ever get a kiss from Ladybug that he'd remember, but it far suppressed anything he could ever dream up. It wasn't really electricity, although that was there, just skimping on the ends of his nerves, there was also something more amazing there as well.

Something amongst the sweet sugary onslaught of everything that solidifies a part of Marinette that just everything. It was warmth, fullness. It felt like a puzzle piece that after so long, connected properly into place.

It wasn't perfect by any means as lips and teeth clashed together— it was hard not to when they were smiling so much— but it also felt a bit like home. He was lost in it. Gladly lost in it, in her, in home. He was just _gone._ In the safety that she provided just within the circumference of her arms, and he'd be more than happy to stay there for the rest fo his life, loved, happy and finally feeling like he could breathe for once since his mother's disappearance.

Because he didn't have much of that, and if one simple kiss from her could bring that labyrinth of feeling to him, he couldn't imagine what the feeling would be when he was just with her— playing video games together, watching late night movies, baking things, family dinners with her parents, or even little double dates with Alya and Nino.

It was everything and more and he knew he didn't deserve it, but he'd fight to keep it. To keep her, and when she started to lightly slide her hand through the ruffles of his hair and scratch at his head, he had to do everything in his willpower not to just melt. But his purs did fall through.

When they parted minutes later, but felt more like hours rolled into one, he nuzzled the top of her head as he brought her in close so that her cheek was curled into his chest, her fingers clutched and twisted into his shirt. He didn't mind the wrinkles that would form, nor his father's latter yelling of how improper it would look to not have a corrected shirt.

"But you know." Her voice made him snap back to the present, tone teasing and fun and he was ready for the playful jab that she would without a doubt, deliver. "Your jokes could still use some work."

He laughed, nose brushing along her hair. "I don't know, my lady. I think my jokes actually melt your socks off."

Her groan was never more beautiful.

**Author's Note:**

> Husband's thoughts:
> 
> I love the idea that Adrien gets all his ideas of the outside world through Anime and 80's movies. One day there is an explosion going off behind him as he walks away from it. He extends his hand to Lady who is bruised from the recent akuma. Epic music swelles in his head. "Come with me if you want to live."
> 
> Ladybug snorts as she lifts herself up.
> 
> "Nope"
> 
> Also since I do art, let me know if anyone wants a Terminator-Chat Concept drawing?


End file.
